Womanspace--happy places; spiritual spaces.

I don't know about you, but I have these special places that I usually refer to as my "happy places".  Door County, WI is one of them for me.  My entire family (grandparents, uncles, cousins, etc) used to go up to Door County every summer for a week and go camping together. It was a great time.  When ever I go to Door county those memories and rituals just produce such a comforting feeling for me...it's a happy place!

Womanspace in Rockford, IL is one of those places for me.  Womanspace was founded by two of our Sisters: Dorothy Bock and Elaine Hirschenberger.  You can read more about their story here. 

I started going to the center about 6 years ago to play, create, and spend time with Elaine and Dorothy.  I try to get there 1 or 2 times a year.  When I am there I feel this peacefulness and groundedness within me.  It is a space where I can let go and be creative.  I love listening to Elaine and Dorothy's stories of their experiences.  I am truly at home when I am there. 

I haven't been to Womanspace in about 2 years and I had the opportunity to go and visit the other day.  As soon as I pulled into the driveway I felt a shift within...it was that "home" feeling.  I was thrilled to be greeted by Elaine who embraced me.  She had some things to finish up so I had a few minutes to take in the space.  I walked outside through the Lily garden and enjoyed the beauty.  I walked through the woods to the labyrinth.  Walked around the front and sat for a few meditative minutes in the Celebration Garden while I waited.  

Outside at Womanspace I try to s-l-o-w myself down and really take in the beauty that is around me.  There are artistic renderings everywhere...easy to miss if I'm not being purposeful in my walking (which is my usual mode of being). 

While I was walking and enjoying the art and natural beauty...I felt this calmness and serenity that I have had before while being in this place.  It took photos of little things that seemed to speak to me.  I gave thanks for this time and this space. 

I also enjoyed a great meal and conversation with Elaine and Dorothy, whom I also haven't seen in a while.  Driving home I was reflecting on my relationship with them and experiences I have had at Womanspace.  I am filled with gratitude for how the spirit speaks in these unique ways...through art, nature, and relationships with good people. 

Womanspace is definitely on my list of "happy places"...even better it is truly a place where I encounter God in so many ways.   Where are some of your happy places or spiritual spaces?

My happy place and spiritual space...thanks Womanspace!  Thanks Elaine and Dorothy...much love to you!

Ahhhhh Vacation!

Flower from the Moonglow Bay Garden

A lot has been happening in my life!  I have a new job!  I am a Curriculum Implementation Manager for the company Achieve3000.  I will basically be going into all different schools giving professional development to teachers and administrators.  It's right up my alley and a good mix of my skills and talents as an educator.  I'm thrilled!  So between ending a school year and beginning a new job, the blog life has been on the back burner. 

View from our Deck

But...as I type I am sitting outside, overlooking the river, sun shining and a gentle breeze.  I'm at Moonglow Bay, a vacation home that a group of my nuns and I rent for the week.  It's glorious.  They are the perfect people to vacation with.  We relax, read, play together, pray together, share meals, laughter, and stories.  It's a chance to celebrate our community life as well as have time and space to retreat and nourish our spirits.  We get all get along great and there's always something to do...if you want to!

I had pie-making lessons from
Mary "Pie Maker" Extraordinaire"

I think vacationing is actually an important part of community life.  In our "regular lives" we negotiate the day-to-day living along with ministry responsibilities.  We carve out intentional time to live communally, pray, and play.  Laugh if you want, but I think being able to relax and just be together is another art that people have to negotiate in community life. 

How are we with one another when we eliminate the structure of the day-to-day?  Can we find time to be together and be comfortable with being on our own...or in different configurations of groups?  How do we communicate "vacation expectations"?  It's a different pace, a different routine...all which I think bring us closer as community as well as helps us grow as people.  (Yes...a true educator...I just transformed the concept of "vacation" into a learning process).

Sparklers for the 4th of July

 
With the images, I'm trying to capture the more unique aspects of vacation in an artful way.  It's all about the R's--refresh, relax, rejuvenate, revive, reconnect, reestablish, relationships...etc.  Enjoy this first offering of Vacation 2011...

Quintessential Vacation Pose---Lounging with Kindle

 

Mandalas

Haven't blogged in a while...busy busy end of the school year.  All my educational ministry friends know what I'm talking about!

I have had some time to do some artwork though! 

I did a mandala series.  I used to pray with mandalas a lot and then stepped away from it, but something called me back.  I approach my creative time as prayer.  I don't preplan what I'm going to "make"; in fact, I have no idea what's going to emerge.  This really frees me.  It mutes my perfectionist's voice who often says, "It has to be like _____" and really makes room for the Holy Spirit to enter and do her good work!  My creative time is quiet, sometimes with music...or not.  My artwork usually represents how I'm feeling, what's going on, and how God is speaking to me.  Sometimes, I'm amazed at what emerges! 

What in the heck are mandalas, you ask?  Simply, in Sanskrit it means circle.  I was introduced to it as a means of prayer and conversation early on in my spiritual direction.  Here are some more good resources on mandalas:

•   Click MANDALA for the wikipedia version. 
• The mandala project has some great resources. 
• And my friend, Stella DeVenuta, OSF does some of the most brilliant mandala work--as an artist and as an interpreter/spiritual guide.   

So...I have this mandala series...actually they are not finished yet.  I'd like to add some poetry for each one.  I'd also like to mount them with some sort of colored background and maybe add some more embellishments like fibers or rice paper or something. 

I hesitate putting something up on my blog that is "unfinished" until I was praying the other night and realized that might be my perfectionist talking.   (That's him...with the tie on...LOL)

An aside story...While I was having a rough time in my life, not knowing which end was up half the time.  I created this cartoon book called "On The Inside".  On The Inside is 47 "characters" that are literally on the inside of me...like perfectionist, intuition, frustration, anger, joy...etc.  Each character has a name and a haiku that describes who they are and what they do.  It was a great project; gave me language for things I didn't really understand.  It also was quite amusing and fun to create!  So anyway...that's Percy Perfectionist.

Back to unfinished mandalas...so I decided this was a challenge for me...share a part of myself that's "in process", unpolished, not quite up to my standards...yet.  I watercolored paper and went all crazy with stuff.  Then I ripped it all apart and sewed (those of you who follow my blog that know me...YES I SEWED using a SEWING MACHINE) the pieces back together.  Boom...reflective, prayerful, unfinished mandalas.  I don't have titles or poetry with them yet, just the images.   I have some close-ups of each one so you can see the detail too.  Enjoy!


This is the first one (actually it's the last one created).  It was the ugliest, most putrid painting I've ever seen.  I was going to throw it away!  I resisted and sewed it back together and I felt really drawn to it.  I love the complexity and the layers.  My favorite part is the window with the fibers showing through.  And...there's glitter!  Who doesn't love sparkly?

This one I think is going to be called "I AM's Fire"...hmmm...it's really intense.  But then again, so is the fiery, passion of my I AM. 

This one seems very serene to me.  I like the pockets of white and I'm addicted to salt resist with watercolors.  It just looks so cool (and it's something I can do with my paint phobia)



I saved my favorite for last.  I don't know what I'm going to call this, but this really speaks to me at a deep level.  I've been praying with it for a couple weeks now.  I love the intensity of the colors.  And yet, there's a calmness in parts too.  This was some total Holy Spirit action going on here that's all I know!

Retreat Artwork

I wanted to share some of the creations that I did during my retreat days.  I had the intention of making this some creative space days and the Holy Spirit was definitely present.  I was arting like there was no tomorrow.  It was wonderful.  Here are some pieces with haikus that go with them from my Triduum retreat.

This "I AM" is a profound thing for me.  She came out of a prayer experience and has given me some of my "hutzpah" back.  She is the me who is confident, faith-filled, believing.  She is my strength.  Her name is, "I AM" and has been a rich part of my prayer and journey lately.  You will see she appears in my art work and Haikus frequently.

As sun rise: I AM
Strong; harmonious:  I AM
I AM who I AM

She finds her balance
A sense of place, she has found.
Yes.  She did fight back.

A spiraled journey
She has traveled day by dad
To the center: Joy.

Words capture moment
Stay with me, in the present.
Look toward the sun.  Rise.

Who is this shadow?
We know she burns with passion.
She will break through.  Free.

This "I AM Cross"  doesn't have a Haiku.  This cross was significant for me, a piece I did on Good Friday.  It really symbolized a refounding of my I AM.



This next piece is a triptych entitled:  "Caves of Faith"  They each have an individual title as well which I'll put in the caption with her Haiku.  I love this piece.  I didn't intend to leave the ladies white, but when they emerged out of the background, it was so powerful.  This piece was truly the Holy Spirit working through me.

 

"Caves of Faith"

 

"Pleading"
Begin the journey.
Pleading:  "God please understand."
Humbly waiting. Loved.

"Belief"
I know you're there God.
My call; always in my heart.
I will wait for you.

"Joy"
I give my life, God.
To You, I sing the praises.
Yes...for all my life.

Sacred Silence

I have reflections to reflect and artwork to share, but not enough time at the moment--Stay tuned for that.

I took a few days away for retreat at the CSA Motherhouse hermitages for the Triduum.  It was a wonderful space for me of rest, art-ting, prayer, and sacred silence.  Holy Thursday, on my walk, I brought my camera and just snapped anything and everything that caught my eye.  I saw many glimpses of the resurrection as green emerged from the SNOW (snow? Yes...SNOW on April 22).  Enjoy the slide show of the images and the song: Sacred Silence by T. Booth.